Further Impact
by WhatHaveWeDone
Summary: Set immediately after the episode Impact, the Tracys learn that sometimes rescues have further repercussions. Rated for language, maybe higher than is needed but better safe than sorry. Now completed.
1. Chapter 1

_Note: This is my first piece of fan fiction - it's a scenario that I couldn't get out of my head so I decided to write it. And since it is being written I thought I would share it._

 _It's set immediately after the episode Impact, and I have assumed a certain amount of familiarity with what went on - you'll have to go buy the episode if you are not familiar. As such I don't own any of the ideas or characters._

 _Also, please forgive me if there is an interesting mix of spellings - I am from the UK but my laptop the US. I try to stick to one type, but don't always catch them all._

* * *

John gazed out of the viewing port: he was pleased that he still never got tired of the view of the Earth below. Though his attention was often elsewhere through necessity it was oddly comforting to see everyone and everything spread out below him.

This time it was a call with Scott that held his concentration.

"No, this is the plan" he once again told his oldest brother.

"Thunderbird 3 needs repairs before it is good to launch again, so Brains is working on that. Captain O'Bannon has her hands full with her own station and crew. So I'm going to manouver Thunderbird 5 back over Tracy Island and lower the space elevator for Brains to inspect. When he's happy it's safe it will be loaded up with fuel. I'll make sure that's in the tanks here and then be right down for you to give me a full medical."

John could see that Scott still wasn't happy, but they'd been having a variation of this conversation for the last 15 minutes.

"You took quite a blow to the back John, while you were dragging Global One out of the way of that comet, are you sure you're ok?" Scott was using that piercing look of his that he used to pry the truth from his younger brothers.

"If you're asking if it hurts, then the short answer is yes." John sighed and ran his fingers through his hair. "But of course, you guys never come back from a mission with bumps and bruises".

Scott's gaze shifted to one side, looking uncomfortable. "Yes, but we're not orbiting at 400 km when it happens."

"You're worried, I get it I really do. That's the way I feel every time you go out. But this really is the best, quickest, safest way."

Scott's expression softened at being reminded how often John was left watching and listening while his brothers risked their lives. "I know, but I don't like it. EOS can handle getting 5 back into position right?"

John smiled at the typical Scott stubbornness as he _still_ refuses to accept the obvious solution to the problem. "With one arm tied behind her back."

"Then you rest up while she does that, got it?"

"Fine!" John threw up his hands, then flinched as his back spasmed. Seeing Scott scowl he went on "I'll take some pain killers and get to bed until the space elevator is ready. Happy?" Maybe it wasn't as much Scott stubbornness as Tracy stubbornness, recognising it in himself as well.

"Happy is a strong word for what I'm feeling right now, but sure. Call us if anything changes."

"I will. I'll see you in a few hours, Thunderbird 5 out." John turned off the vid screen and turned to the space station controls.

"You do know I don't have arms, don't you John?" Came EOS' gentle tones.

"Of course EOS."

"Good, I thought you might have a head injury as well."

"Plot a course back for me please EOS and begin when you're ready" John said, as he slowly made his way to his sleeping quarters.

"Acknowledged" intoned EOS, "how hurt are you exactly?"

Johns's expression was part amusement at EOS' desire for precise data, and part grimace for the pain his was experiencing. The truth was that the comet debris had him solidly on his lower back, winding him and sending him into a spin. He was fortunate that he hadn't spun out into space. And now his entire back ached, paeticularly when he moved. He could still work of course, but his injury was less than an hour old and he had already had enough.

"It's a hard thing to quantify EOS. Just wake me when we get there please."

"Of course John."

John reached into one of the many emergency packs that were stashed around the space station - this one situated by the head of his bed. He took one of the packets of pain killers, and snapped the cool back to start it's endothermic reaction. This he held against his back, breathing deep as he held it against what he thought would be a pretty impressive bruise.

John lay down on his bed, waiting for the pain killers to kick in. The rescue of Global One had been at the end of an already long day, so it wasn't long before sleep claimed him.


	2. Chapter 2

The pain was piercing. Stabbing. And sudden.

John awoke with a cry, confused and shocked. The dull ache in his back had gone, replaced by the needle sharp pain that was ripping through him. He sat up and as a wave of even greater pain hit him he tumbled off the bed.

"John! What's wrong?" For an AI EOS could replicate the sound of concern very well.

John tried to answer but he could barely breathe. The pounding, stabbing, piercing he could feel took overall other functions: movement, thought, speech.

"John! Respond." EOS sounded more urgent.

John tried to gather himself. What did he know? EOS was guiding Thunderbird 5 back to it's usual position. He had been out on a rescue earlier that day. He had been been hit by comet debris that hurt, but nothing that compared to this. He needed more information. He gathered himself, forcing out the words as he knelt on the floor of the station clutching at his back.

"EOS" he managed to gasp, "where... where are...we?"

"We will be in position in 23 minutes John. Your suit data informs me that your heart rate, respiration rate and blood pressure has increased: what is your status?"

They were close. Good. This was far beyond the aches and pains of a normal rescue. Worse even than the time he had broken his arm at seven years old. Another wave hit him, and he cried out again.

"It hurts EOS. Here." He gestured to his back. "I can't..." Deep breath. "When we are in position I'm going straight down." His words shuddered to a stop.

"Are you sure John? The capsule may have been damaged during the rescue."

"m'sure." Was all he could manage in reply.

"Shall I inform Tracy Island of your situation?"

John nodded, not trusting himself to speak.

"This is EOS to Tracy Island, come in please."

The comm link flashed to life - this time it was Virgil who appeared as a hologram in front of him.

"EOS? Where's John? What's wrong?"

"John is currently experiencing a medical emergency. He will be descending in the space elevator in 19 minutes. I am sending all relevant data to you now."

"John, are you there? Can you hear me? Please speak to me." Virgil's voice was calm, yet the concern was palpable. His hologram glanced down, reading the information EOS had sent him. "How long has this been going on? Scott said you would call if anything changed." Anger and, yes fear were creeping in to his usually stoic brothers voice.

"Just now," John forced out. "It... was sudden."

John wanted to explain, to give more detail, to give Virgil a proper brief **-** that was his role in International Rescue after all. He wanted to speak to his brother but couldn't get his thoughts together.

Another wave hit and chased any thoughts he did have away. It took a few moments before John could make sense of her surroundings again, and realised that Virgil will have heard him this time. How humiliating.

"Stay with me John, take deep breathes OK? I know Brains didn't want you in that space elevator just yet, but you are right to come down straight away. I really don't like the look of these readings." The last was said under his breath, but John could still make it out. "I want you to get to the space elevator now, so you are ready as soon as Thunderbird 5 is in place, can you do that for me?" Virgil was now in rescue mode, something that gave John confidence.

"I ... I don't know." John's vision was fading round the edges and his stomach contracting. Please no, he thought to himself. I really don't want to puke up here.

"Come on brother, I'm right here. Listen to me, you got this. Get up, start walking, easy does it. EOS, can you speed up at all?"

"Affirmative. Thunderbird 5 will now be in stable synchronous orbit in 12 minutes."

"Great, thanks EOS. Hear that John? 12 minutes. It takes longer to cook a pizza."

John struggled to his feet. The stabbing pain had not lessened, and he was now swimming in sweat and trembling. He had to use his bunk to steady himself as he took a few unsteady steps.

"That's right, good, keep going." Virgil encouraged him along as he slowly moved out of his sleeping area. Virgil's hologram turned to one side, but John was so intent on the mammoth task of moving that he didn't pay much attention to the quiet conversation he was having with someone just out of sight.

"It's John, I don't know Gordon. Something from earlier maybe. He'll be here in ten and he's coming right down. Get Scott and Alan and head to the landing pad. And grab Brains as well - we might need him to secure the elevator."

John made it out of the bedroom and into the corridor.

"Good job. I'm right here, keep going, not far now, just a few more steps." Virgil kept up his encouraging monologue as John inched his way through the space station. He kept it up as John cried out and fell twice more. He kept it up as John collapsed the last few meters when John's legs would not hold him. He kept it up as EOS announced their safe arrival above the island. He kept it up when John crawled into the elevator and it began it's descent. He kept it up even when the pain was too much, and John could no longer hear him.


	3. Chapter 3

_Thank you all for you're feedback - I appreciate it so much! The story is now cranking up, but I think we should be done in a total of seven chapters._

 _At this point I have to say I have no idea if what follows is medically accurate - but this is the story that is swirling round my noggin, that I have to write to get it out, so please forgive me for any errors as I have done no research._

 _edited slightly just for formatting to make it a bit easier to read._

* * *

Gordon sauntered through the corridors of his home glad for another beautiful day on the idyllic island. He planned to get a few lengths in before lunch - perhaps that was no surprise. His plans changed though hearing that sound from the villa.

It was the sound of pain, bone cracking gut wrenching pain only slightly distorted from being broadcast over a comm line.

Pounding down the stairs, around the corner and into the main room he saw Virgil speaking to hologram-John. Gordon's usual good humour was long gone as he realised that if John was in trouble it meant he was _really_ in trouble, isolated as he was in orbit.

"That's right, good, keep going" Virgil was saying, face intent on the image before him.

"Virgil what's happening?" Gordon demanded.

"It's John, I don't know Gordon. Something from earlier maybe." Virgil turned to him and said, calm and in control as usual but with a rare edge to his voice that meant panic might not be far away.

"He's still upstairs? How long till the space elevator is safe to use? Thunderbird 3 isn't ready to go again yet."

"He'll be here in ten and he's coming right down. Get Scott and Alan and head to the landing pad."

"On it Virgil, you keep him talking, we'll be there to meet him." Gordon tried to sound confident and optimistic, the way he usually did when on a rescue. He knew his brothers wondered how he did it - keeping the fun side of his personality prominent when they were in danger and working against the odds. In truth it wasn't usually that hard as all he had to do is remember they had the best equipment and the best people in the world. He had absolute faith in his family after all. If anyone asked now though he would have been honest that this was different. It was personal.

His veil of professionalism must have worked though as Virgil nodded, the early signs of panic receding now there was a plan. Gordon and Virgil always worked well together: their differences becoming complimentary as soon as they had a plan.

"And grab Brains as well - we might need him to secure the capsule."

Gordon gave a wave in response to this as he was already on the way out the door.

 _Where would they be?_ Gordon thought to himself. He didn't want to have to search the entire complex, there wasn't time before the elevator arrived. But - not for the first time perhaps - fortune smiled on Gordon as he found Scott and Alan together just heading down the stairs to the beach.

"Wait!" he yelled, the brothers turning as they heard the urgency in his voice, his swimmer's lungs making his voice carry. "John's... well I don't really know, just that he's on his way down and he needs us."

"On his way, why? More detail Gordon!" Scott demanded, frowning.

"I don't have it. Virgil's talking to him but... it seems bad. We need to meet him at the landing bay. Alan, you go prep the med bay."

They all paused for a moment. It felt long a moment as the feeling of dread crept in - they counted themselves very lucky indeed that they rarely had to use any of their emergency medical equipment.

Then the moment passed, and the three brothers flew into action. Alan went down; to medical, Scott up to Gordon, and thenthey ran in step through the house to the hangers.

They passed Thunderbird 3 and Gordon shouted out to Brains, who was winching himself down from a high gantry. "Brains, we need you right now. Follow me."

He had barely slowed, and certainly didn't stop, but Scott still managed to outpace him. Heart pumping in his chest he followed his brother and they made it to the landing pad just as the space elevator descended.

Gordon tried to get his panting breathes under control, but anxiety was just as much the enemy now as exercise and the seconds drew out as the anchoring claw moved into place.

Not quite into place. They all knew the sounds the various crafts made as well as the knew the sound of the sea, and the reassuring clunk that followed the hydrolic hiss was missing. John's earlier plans had turned out to be wise - a slight misalignment in the elevator claws meant that redocking had failed.

Gordon and Scott launched themselves at the elevator door anyway, but of course the safety features kicked in - the door could not be opened as the system thought it was still in transit.

"Brains! Open this now, John's trapped in there." Gordon knew he now sounded harsh, angry, even rude to their faithful friend but he didn't care - his bigger brother needed help and he was just out of reach.

"Hold on." was the only thing Brains said, joining them on the platform and opening a panel just to the side of the door. Well the only thing Gordon could really understand. The rest was muttered and anyway contained phrases like 'bypass the subroutine' and 'reinitialse primary motherboard' and other things that Gordon only had half an ear for at the best of times. And now was not the best of times.

Gordon exchanged a look with Scott while Brains hurriedly pulled about wiring and circuits. Gordon was shocked to see the level of panic on his oldest brother's face. There was none. Just a steely determination and the promise of harsh repercussions if he ever found out that someone was to blame for hurting one of his little brothers. That was enough to steady Gordon, and that was why Scott was his rock.

"Got it!" Exclaimed Brains. Gordon would have been surprised at the amount of relief that could be expressed in two short words, but his only focus now was what the opening door revealed.

* * *

Scott glanced around the elevator - it was small in here, designed to transport one person and a small amount of cargo so this didn't take long. His eyes first went - of course - to the chair in the center where John would usually be sitting, but it was empty. Instead his brother was sprawled on the floor. The only sound was John's rasping breath and Virgil's calming voice through the intercom.

"You're nearly there John, won't be long now, we're waiting for you, nearly there..."

"We're here Virgil" Scott interrupted "We're in."

"Thank fuck for that" the swearing from Virgil surprised him, the middle brother was not usually foul mouthed. "He hasn't been responding for the last ... 8 minutes, his vitals are all over the place and his blood pressure is dropping."

"Alan is down in the med bay, meet us there Virgil" Scott instructed as he carefully stepped into the capsule around his brothers fallen form. Virgil didn't sign off, but Scott was no longer paying attention anyway.

"John, can you hear me? Wake up John." Scott said softly. John stirred, muttering something but didn't open his eyes. "Come on now, no lazing about on the job." This got a grunt of amusement from Gordon who was leaning in trying to get a look at his brother. "Help me with him."

It took just a few moments for the two brothers to get into position to lift John out onto the landing platform. The close confines made it tricky and they were tentative lest they hurt John more. Scott took his arms, Gordon his legs, and with some low, clipped communication he was out of the the cramped capsule he was curled up in. The change of scenery must have helped as John began to stir.

"John, come on, wake up, talk to me" Scott spoke urgently and relief flooded him as John's eyes opened in a burst of green.

"Hey, what are you doing up here?" John's voice was weak.

"You're down here, don't you remember?" Scott shared a concerned glance with Gordon but managed to keep his worry out of his voice.

"I guess so..." John looked around seeming confused. "Things are blurry to be honest." he made to sit up, but a firm hand on his chest from each of his brothers stopped him.

"Oh no, none of that now, you lie there and start talking."

John didn't struggle, but still seemed confused. "I was sleeping while waiting to come down, and then" he shuddered to a halt at the memory. "I'm feeling better now though."

"Really? You definately don't look it" Gordon pied up, despite a warning glance from Scott. Now was not the time for Gordon-the-jester.

"Better, in what way?" Scott pressed.

"It doesn't hurt as much any more, it just aches. I ache all over. I think I panicked unnecessarily. Sorry." John's tone was hesitant, weary, and what was that? Embarrassed?

Scott took in John's clammy skin, pale face, rapid shallow breathing and darting eyes and sighed inwardly. Just like John to try and make light of an injury. Just like all of them really. Scott always felt the need to the one in control when around his family. Not because he thought they couldn't cope - no, never that. But it was his job as eldest to make sure they didn't have anything they _needed_ to cope with. No matter how many times the others would give him a playful prod for being straight-laced and serious, he knew what his duty was and was happy to do it. Looking down at John Scott felt the depth of his failure to protect those he cared for, and resolved to make it right.

"Lets just get you to med bay shall we? We can debate the meaning of 'unnecessary' later. Gordon." Each taking one of John's arms the lifted him first to sitting, then to his feet though it was obvious he would not be able to stand alone. Slowly, with encouragement from Scott and gentle ribbing about his stamina from Gordon, the three made their unsteady way downstairs.


	4. Chapter 4

_And we are now going at pace indeed! We are still on track for seven chapters - 5 just needs a polish and 6 is nearly done so it shouldn't be very long._

* * *

"Alan is down in the med bay, meet us there Virgil." Scott's voice was calm and authoritative - something that Virgil was well used to listening to, so that he started moving even without thought, heading down to meet his brothers.

He was on the second step when the dizzyness hit, and he had to sit with a light thump.

 _Just shock,_ he told himself, _just a little shock, get it together!_ It was only now that the last half hour - not even that - began to sink in. He had thought it would be a normal rescue situation when he answered the call from Thunderbird 5, John giving them the details of someone in need before they worked out a plan together. But his adrenaline had spiked the moment he realised that it was John in trouble, and now he was feeling the after affects.

Virgil closed his eyes as he remembered John's twisted face, his scream as ... whatever it was... flared in him. His worst fear was a brother in peril out of his reach to help; it was something that sometimes woke him at nights. Virgil had a desperate need to help his brothers when they were sick or injured, and the frustration he felt when there was a problem he couldn't fix - mechanical or otherewise was immense.

Virgil didn't know what he had been saying to John as he watched his brother stagger to the help and safety the surface of the planet offered. He just knew he had to keep talking, keep that link going, be the trail of breadcrumbs that John needed him to be. It was then that he remembered that fear and pain were not the only things that he had seen on John's face. The famous Tracy stubbornness. The strength of will that meant John lived most of the time in the perilous vacuum of space, that sent the five out into dangerous situations everyday, that didn't let them give up, was also what kept John moving.

Well, Virgil wasn't about to give up either, not when he was still needed! As he opened his eyes he found the dizzyness had passed, and he hurried on.

Virgil made it to the med bay, just as Gordon and Scott were helping John onto one of the beds, Brains following behind. A quick glance and Virgil could see all the machines set up and equipment laid out ready. He gave Alan a nod well done and a hand to the shoulder has he passed - it was clear that his training was paying off.

"Hey Virg, long time no see" John said weakly.

"Hey yourself, what have you been up to up there?"

"Nothing, I swear, EOS can vouch for me."

"Hmmmm, well see about that. First of all lets make you comfortable. Alan, pass me that oxygen mask please."

It was the work of but a few moments to get the mask on John's face, encouraging him to take slow and easy breathes.

"Better?" Virgil waited for John's nod. "Good. Next we need to find out what's going on in there. A full scan maybe. Everyone back."

Scott, Alan, Gordon and Brains had been crowding round the sides of the bed, offering quiet words of reassurance, a firm grip on the arm, a brief smile, but quickly stepped back at Virgil's instruction. Virgil grabbed the controls and programmed in ... well everything, he didn't really know what he was looking for after all. Though none of them were doctors - the medical type of doctor anyway - they all knew the importance of having the best information, which the seldom used multi-scanner provided. A couple of long minutes passed as a range of waves, light, probes and scans from the unit above the bed gathered the reams of data, while International Rescue waited impatiently and John continued his attempts to slow his breathing.

Once it was done the brothers stepped back into their places. "Now just to have a look" Virgil muttered to himself.

"If you would like, I can be of assistance. I can analyse the data with greater swiftness than any human, and extrapolate a likely diagnosis based on John's medical history." EOS' calm tones filled the medical room, surprising everyone.

"EOS! How long have you been there?" Scott sounded not just a bit annoyed.

"I have been watching John though the island systems since he left orbit."

"Watching but not helping?"

"Until this point John has required physical assistance which I can not provide. But now I may again be able to help." It was impossible to tell if EOS didn't notice the tone in Scott's voice - she was meant to stay up in orbit on Thunderbird 5 after all - or if she just didn't care about it.

"Fine EOS, analyse the information." Virgil made the decision. "Let's face it, she will be better at this than any of us." He saw the nods of agreement from his brothers, though some liked it more than others. _After all,_ Virgil thought to himself, _when you are trying to fix a problem you should use any and every tool at your disposal._

"Analysing. Cross referencing. Factoring in previous medical and social history. There is a 99.35% chance of the following scenario: the blow to the back that John suffered in the earlier rescue has caused severe bruising of his internal organs, specifically his left kidney. The kidney has recently ruptured, and he is now experiencing internal bleeding. Suggested course of action: surgery to remove damaged organ and stop the bleeding. Alternative course of action: none available to recommend. Priority: Urgent. I can give you further statistics but I don't think you will like them."


	5. Chapter 5

"Well, that's shit." That was from John, only slightly muffled behind his oxygen mask. "What other statistics?"

"Survival rates with and without the recommended treatment, likely complications, overall effect on life expectancy..."

"No, you're right, I won't like them" John interrupted EOS' cool litany, wheezing slightly.

Alan was shocked - ruptured kidney? Internal bleeding? None of them had had an injury like that before. When Gordon had told him to get to the medical bay, Alan was half way there before he let himself think. He didn't know whether he should be proud or worried that he seemed to be moving on autopilot. His instincts of following instructions - from both his older brother or another member of International Rescue - must be deeply ingrained, more so than the others gave him credit for.

He was still working automatically when setting up the equipment he thought that Virgil - with the most medical training - might need: and from the look Virgil gave him when he walked in he got it right. Proud, he decided he should be proud. To be trusted with this responsibility and be able to fulfil it despite his age.

But what would they do now? They certainly had neither the expertise or equipment to perform the sort of procedure EOS was talking about. Instinctively, and almost as one with his brothers, he turned to Scott.

 _Scott will know what to do, Scott always knows what to do, he's the man with a plan! Please have a plan!_

It seems he did have a plan. As detailed and well thought out as Alan had come to expect from the oldest Tracy brother, using everyone and playing to the strengths of the team.

"It may be shit but we've dealt with worse John, keep it together. Gordon, Alan get John onto Thunderbird 1 - make him as comfortable as possible. I want him ready to go as soon as I have finished pre-flight checks and believe me they are going to be done in record time. Virgil, get in contact with the GDF - they must owe us enough favours by now. I want co-ordinates to the nearest hospital that can perform the surgery. If calling in favours doesn't work threaten or promise anything you have to. Brains, we need a concise report of John's medical history and his current status to pass to the medical staff. EOS, keep an earout for any distress calls please. After John's in Thunderbird 1 Alan will be coming with me. We might need One, Two or Four at any point for a mission but we are not leaving John alone. Kayo can sort out a rota when she gets back to the island and Brians still needs to finish on Three. Got it everyone?"

There was a chorus of "FAB" and International Rescue sprung into action.

* * *

There was a clamour of voices over the intercom but John struggled to make sense of them feeling as dizzy as he was and with a brain full of fog.

"How are we doing done there Alan?" That was Scott.

"John's secure, and I've just put in an IV line at Virgil's suggestion. Gordon has closed the hatch and I'm strapping myself in. We're good to go." So that's what John now felt attached to his arm.

"Excellent. Pre-flight is complete. Virgil, I need those co-cordinates."

"Two minutes Scott."

"Make it one. Brains? EOS? Status?"

"Uploading relevant medical data to Thunderbird One now."

"There are currently no situations that require the attention of International Rescue."

"Just what I wanted to hear. Virgil, I'm about to launch. Where. Am. I. Going." Tempers were fraying. _Calm down guys, take it easy._

"Sending co-ordinates now - no threats or promises needed, Colonel Casey was most helpful." Virgil's words somehow seemed to lighten the atmosphere.

"Good job, Virgil. Launching in 5... 4... 3... 2... 1... Thunderbird One is go!"

* * *

Alan sat back clutching the straps that secured him to his seat - the launch of a Thunderbird from base was always a bit rough as it had been designed for speed rather than comfort. It wasn't long though before they were at cruising altitude, course laid in, and Alan moved back to his brothers side.

Alan was usually full of the confidence of the young, believing - despite their personal tragedies - anything was possible: that he and his family could rescue everyone and they would always be on time. Now he was worried that anything was possible - that something as simple as a back ache could take a brother from him. He was scared - scared to the bone, but he owed it to John not to show it.

"Hey, how are you feeling?" he asked gently.

"Hey Alan, how's the schoolwork going?" John's reply was groggy, slightly slurred and worryingly out of context.

"Not bad, not bad, you working on anything at the moment?" Checking the medical readouts Alan tried to keep John talking.

"Not really, I'm all done. Alan... Alan I don't feel very well."

"I know, but it won't be long before you feel better." He turned away slightly and spoke softly into his comm unit. "Scott, If there's anything left for Thunderbird One to give, we need it now, he's not making much sense any more."

"FAB. Brace yourself, this may get choppy."

Alan knew that the best thing to do would be to sit back down in his seat, but he couldn't leave his brothers side. He kept hold of his hand and kept talking as one brother faded in and out of consciousness and the other hurtled them through the sky.

Alan didn't feel the usual flush of success when they arrived at the hospital. Normally this was where their role ended, but instead a new duty began and Alan just felt numb. He was numb as he and Scott waited while John was rushed into surgery. Numb as Scott said he had to leave when EOS reported a flash flood he needed to help with. Numb when Kayo came to relieve him just as John was wheeled out of surgery. And he was numb when he explained to his family that though the surgery was successful the doctors wouldn't say when John would wake up. The only thing that helped was when he arrived back on Tracy Island and Scott pulled his three brothers into a group hug, and they all drew strength from each other, just like they always did.


	6. Chapter 6

John had been dreaming. He couldn't remember what it was about, good or bad, long or short. He couldn't remember falling asleep, but he knew he had been dreaming. Was he dreaming now? A dream in which he was thinking about dreaming? That sounded... too complicated for him to focus on right now, which was surprising. Complicated, complex, convoluted was usually just his thing. Right up his street. Right up his street - that was a strange phrase. Where did it come from? Where was that street? What was the first thing that was up it?

 _You're rambling John, stop it._ That wasn't like him either - he was usually concise, precise. It was good that he recognised him and not him. At least he knew who he was. He thought he might have been having some sort of trouble - he had some jumbled memories of being on Tracy Island and then talking to Alan in Thunderbird One. He couldn't pinpoint what happened though, which might have something to do with those dreams he couldn't grasp. Pin point. That was more obvious.. Pin points were sharp, had a small surface area. At last something that made sense.

CRASH CLACK CLATTER

And just like that John was dragged from his quiet contemplation as he jerked awake. The movement caused a flash of pain in his side and he gasped.

"Oh, crap and arse" said a familiar voice.

"Language Alan" John chided, noting that his voice was croaky and subdued.

"John, you're awake! I'm sorry. I mean it's fantastic that you're awake, but I'm sorry I woke you like that - I dropped the tray on the way out. But it is so good to see you."

John could just see from where he was that a metal tray, plate and cup were lying on the floor, though at least they seemed empty. "There is no way anyone could sleep through that Alan."

John barely had to turn his head to see the blanket and pillow in the chair next to the bed - luckily, as he didn't think he had the energy for much else and was feeling very sore. "Someone camping out?"

"Yes, we all have been, taking our turn. We're in a GDF hospital and though it's secure we didn't want to leave you alone. And we wanted to have somewhere here when you woke up."

John at last looked directly at Alan - he hadn't realised that he had been avoiding his littlest brothers face, trying to put off seeing the worry and tiredness that was etched there. That _he_ had put there.

Despite his own pain John's big brother instincts kicked in "Come here Alan" he said, beckoning him in for a hug.

Alan thumped into him - perhaps a bit more harshly than he intended considering the machines he was wired up to - but whatever pain medication he was being given took off the brunt of it.

"I knew you were going to be ok, I knew it." Alan's voice was muffled against John's shoulder, but he still heard the lie. "I knew you were going to be ok when you started muttering to yourself - you always do that when you're thinking." That at least was the truth!

"What I'm thinking right now is that you should probably go tell someone that I'm awake." _Before you do more damage to me._

"Yes, I'll get a doctor and call the family, stay right there!" Alan said with a slightly sheepish grin as he wiped his face. And then in a flash he was off down the corridor, leaving John to try and piece his thoughts together.

So he was in hospital. That was... well better than not being in hospital if he was ill, but worse than not needing to be in the first place. _Am I ill? I suppose I must be_ he thought, feeling that a large bandage was stuck to his stomach, and breathing too deeply made it give off waves of fire. Thinking was proving difficult.

A flurry of activity followed in the next hour. He was prodded and inspected by two doctors and a nurse, asking many maby questions several times over. They were quick to demand answers but somewhat slower to respond when John had questions of his own. They wanted to leave it 'until he was up for it', but his persistence finally paid off. It seemed that EOS had not been 99 point whatever percent accurate but 100%. The removal of what remained of his left kidney had been the only thing to save his life.

He spoke his family, and it pained him to see how relieved they were. Gordon joked with him, Virgil was as thoughtful and supportive as ever and Scott, well Scott seemed angry. With John or with himself it was impossible to tell, but Scott always got angry if something went sideways that he thought shouldn't have done.

Mostly due to his recent surgery his memory was patchy since his call with Virgil, so had to get the others to fill him in on the journey to the hospital. Calling down to Tracy Island he did remember quite visceraly. He tried not to think about it but that long, slow painful stagger to safety- barely able to stand - was going to haunt him for a while yet. That's when it hit home that he had almost died.

He'd never been in that much trouble before, that much pain. Never been in a situation he couldn't get out of, or had a problem he couldn't solve. He had scared his family and scared himself! Added to the fact that his most recent dose of pain killers was starting to wear off and he was feeling somewhat emotional, suddenly tiredness hit him.

"I think... I think I need to rest now guys." he said. The others didn't sign off until Alan had helped him settle down more comfortably on the narrow hospital bed, this time being more considerate of the lines and cables that monitored him. It was strange to see their holographic images all looking down on him as he relaxed into sleep, and his last thought was that he wished they would stop staring.

* * *

"I just want to go home" John's voice was mournful and listless, as he repeated the words he'd been saying since he woke up the half hour before.

"Oh, don't glower like that John." That was Scott, who had replaced Alan by his bedside. "Literally 36 hours ago you had major surgery for a life threatening injury - which we still need a chat about by the way - of course they're not going to discharge you yet."

John winced inwardly at the the thought of one of Scott's 'chats' - the other four would usually do anything to get out of them as they were an intimidating cross between a lecture and an argument.

"I know, I know, I'm just feeling out of sorts and want..." he cut himself off before he said it again.

"Then rest up brother." Scott was sympathetic, but John could see he wasn't going to get anywhere with him today.

In the end it took John only three days to get the hospital to agree that he was fit to be discharged. The first part of his plan was being a model patient - sleeping a lot, eating when told to even letting people give him a hand to sit up. He made lots of references to the medical equipment that International Rescue had at their disposal. He made sure the medical staff knew that _they_ knew of any worrying symptoms to look out for. He gave casual reminders of the speed at which he could be transported back. It was a short battle, and he gave a small smile of relief when it paid off and Virgil was helping him strap in to Thunderbird 2 to take him back home.

The campaign to get Scott to agree that he was fit enough for active duty was going to have to be much more subtle however...


	7. Chapter 7

_Note - I did a bit of research for this bit, and what John says about kidneys is completely correct. This is much longer than my other pats, but didn't really justify being divided in two either._

* * *

The first two days at home John did as he was told and stayed in bed. He let his brothers fuss around him, bringing drinks, food and books. They were more or less in and out of his room all day, as much to reassure themselves than do anything for him. In truth John wasn't up to much bar eating and sleeping. Modern medicine was a wonderful thing and his scar would be relatively small, but he was willing to admit that after fairly major surgery he needed time to recuperate. He felt tired even after he awoke, his abdomen hurt whenever he moved, and the pain meds made him feel spacey. So he allowed himself those two days.

On the third day he heard a call come in: Scott, Virgil and Gordon were dispatched on a rescue leaving Alan as control from the island. Perfect.

John slowly levered himself out of bed. He wasn't going to bother trying to get dressed. _Pajamas_ _would_ _have_ _to_ _do_ , he thought as he draped a blanket around himself. Anyway he didn't want to rush this. Slowly, and with a couple of pauses he made his way into the main room.

"What are you doing up?" Alan asked, one eye still on the display that EOS was feeding information to. "Bed rest means stay in bed you know."

"I know." John slowly lowered himself down onto the couch to avoid putting too much strain on his bandaged stomach. "What's the mission?"

"Cave in, South America. Nothing they can't handle. Seriously though John, you shouldn't be moving about yet." Alan's tone was half stern, half worried.

"Leave it, please, Alan. I'm too tired to read, but too awake to sleep and am feeling restless. I'm just going to sit here for a bit and listen." John saw the dubious look on Alan's face but also noted the flashing icon on the display. "Scott wants you."

That was enough to distract Alan, and John settled in to listen to the rescue. Hearing his brothers go about the rescue with their normal calm professionalism was actually quite soothing. In fact he got so comfortable that he fell asleep, and didn't wake up until the others returned.

"John! Why are you here instead of bed?" Scott woke him with a scowl on his face, clearly not happy with either of his younger brothers.

John gave a yawn. "Just wanted a change of scenery and a bit of company." John saw the look that Scott was turning on Alan, but before he could open his mouth, said "Don't have a go at him, this was all me. Besides, what was he meant to do, wrestle me back to bed when you guys were up to your neck in it and needing him? Would you help me up please?"

Scott grabbed John's outstretched arm, and eased him up with care, despite his obvious annoyance. "You know all the things I'm going to say John, are you really going to make me say them? I would expect this from any of the others, but I thought you were smarter than this."

John grimaced slightly as he caught his balance and noticed Alan trying to sneak away. "Another time maybe Scott, I think it's time for more meds and bed again for me."

Scott's face softened slightly as he realised that John was still in pain and didn't press the issue as he helped him back to his room.

The day after was another mission, and this time it was Virgil who was left behind.

Virgil was eyeing John as he made his way back to the couch, but John just shrugged in return and said with a wry smile "I'm space monitor Virgil, I like to monitor stuff."

John tried not to read too much into those glances, but if anyone would figure out what he was up to it was Virgil, so he was careful and kept quiet and dozed while the others were working. He kept conversation to some words of congratulations on a job well done when all were declared safe. This time he made his own careful way back to bed before Scott could arrive home and give him that 'chat' he had been threatening. Besides, all this walking up and down corridors was more exhausting than it looked, and the medication didn't totally take away the throbbing of he his healing wound. As he sunk back down into sleep he wondered if that was on purpose.

The third mission was Alan once again at the helm of Tracy Island, so this time John bought his tablet with him. "Might try a little reading this time if I can keep my eyes open!" he said, waving the device at Alan.

"Just like you oldsters to have trouble staying awake," came Alan's cheeky reply.

John smiled- things were getting back to normal if the youngest brother was getting his attitude back; he had been way too serious over the last few days.

"Not that way, not that way, shit Alan, come on think."

John had found an article he wanted to read, but was really concentrating on his brothers mutterings.

"What's up?" he asked lightly.

"Oh, erm, sorry bout the language, don't tell Scott ok?" Alan looked guilty for swearing - Scott was like their parents and came down harshly on bad language. From the others at least: John had heard swearing from Thunderbird One on more than one occasion, and was saving that bit of information for when he needed it. "The guys are at a warehouse fire, and I'm looking for a route in and out for them, avoiding some of the nastier chemicals that are being stored there. Nut all the routes I can come up with are actually quite dangerous."

"What about underneath? The sewers Alan!" John said at Alan's blank look. "Most industrial areas have a high capacity sewerage network, which also means it's big and easily accessible."

Alan gave a grin of thanks, quickly pulling up the relevant city's water network. After a few moments study he spoke in his comms "Right guys, I've got your route. It's not going to be the most pleasant but it is the safest by a long way so please don't argue." John allowed himself a small smile of satisfaction - his plan was going to work!

The following week passed in a similar vein: John mostly resting, still spending a lot of time sleeping, but trying to make sure he was in the main room every time International Rescue was needed out in the world.

So he was there when Alan needed advice on how to track weather patterns to predict where the hurricane was going to land. He helped Gordon realign the transceivers to boost a comms signal from deep underground. And it was him - not Virgil - that wrote the code that overrode the malfunctioning factory equipment. As far as he knew none of his brothers had mentioned this surreptitious assistance to Scott: if Scott knew that John was doing more than just listening his rage would fall on them all. They were bound together by the threat of sibling mutual destruction for which John was glad. He needed just a bit more time.

He had been reducing the amount of medication his was taking - gradually, to find the fine line where his head was clouded from neither pain nor opiates. He was also getting out of the habit of having a nap every two hours. He was starting to feel himself again, able to join in mealtimes with others instead of eating whenever he was awake. His ability to concentrate was much better now, and his mind had not felt foggy for a few days, so inactivity was really beginning to chafe.

He was even managing to get dressed every day though he still hadn't made it up a whole flight of stairs without help.

John's slow improvement meant he was also there the day that was one of their busiest for a long time: Virgil was moving containers of toxic waste due for disposal off of their foundering transport ship. Alan was repositioning satellites that had been knocked out of alignment by a small meteor shower, and Scott was providing support to crews fighting a forest fire. That left only Gordon at home, when another call came in.

"This is the yacht Serendipity calling International Rescue! Please come in! Are you there?"

"This is international Rescue, what's your situation?"

"We hit a reef and are taking on water, please help we're sinking!"

"Standby" Gordon frowned at the displays. "They're much closer to us than anyone else, local coast guard won't reach them in time. But I can't go - I'm already trying to manage three missions at once." Gordon slammed his hand down on the desk in frustration.

"Go. I'll handle things here." John said as he stood from the couch where he had been reading. That didn't hurt nearly as much any more.

"No John, you are not ready. You haven't been medically cleared yet." Gordon frowned at him, worry for his brother greater than his worry for those in the sinking boat.

"Don't you trust me?" He knew hew was being a bit of a bastard asking that question as the trust between brothers was one of the few certainties in the Tracy universe.

"Of course! With my life if necessary. With my life frequently in fact." Gordon was rightfully shocked that John would even ask that.

"Then trust me now. Trust me to know my own limits. I am perfectly capable of sitting here and manning the comms. You however are the only one who can save those people."

"Scott will be..."

"Yes, he will, but I'll handle Scott. I've had more practice than the rest of you after all." John reassured in response to Gordon's dubious look.

"Hello International Rescue? Please, are you coming?"

"Fine," Gordon burst, heading towards his subs launch bay "but you are taking one hundred percent of the blame for this one."

 _Not_ _a_ _problem_ , thought John as he sat at the desk that Gordon had been at just a few moments earlier.

With a crack of his knuckles he got started - first moving the virtual display around slightly to mirror his usual configuration on Thunderbird 5.

He reviewed each mission status and sent confirmation to the Serendipity that help was on the way.

"EOS, can you bring up details of forest fire burn patterns for the last ten years please?"

"Of course John. I am please that you are feeling better, you're brothers are not nearly as efficient as you are."

John smiled at that - EOS liked efficiency almost as much as Brains did!

Then Scott came over the intercom.

"Gordon I need that analysis you were working on, I need to know how this fire is likely to shift."

John looked at the algorithm Gordon had been writing. _Not_ _bad_ _but_ _just_ _a_ _little_ _off_ , he thought proud of his little brothers skills. He gave the code a few tweaks, added some of the data EOS had provided, braced himself and spoke.

"Just a moment Scott, the programme is running now."

"John. What the hell do you think you're doing. And where the hell is Gordon. Gordon! Come in right now." Scott sounded furious, no, incandescent.

"Err Thunderbird 4 is go?" Gordon clearly thought that half a world away from his brother was a little too close right now.

"Here's you coordinates Thunderbird 4, step on it if you can as a storm is brewing in the area. They're expecting you. Alan, I've got an updated schematic for those satellites, it might make maneuvering them a bit easier."

"Ummm thanks John." Alan very wisely said nothing further.

"Virgil I'm seeing two container ships in your area, they may be able go take some of the load if you need it."

John had always been good multitasking, but his time in space had honed that talent to something near magical to watch. This would be far from the first time he had co-cordinated four separate missions simultaneously.

"And here is your analysis Scott. Keep an eye out to your south west. Now before you explode yourself or that machine of yours can you just take a few breaths for me?"

"You are still meant to be on damn bed rest John! Resting. In bed. I let that slide, and am starting to think that I shouldn't have done. You are in no fit state right now. And Gordon, just you wait till I get my hands on you!"

"Let me worry about my _fit_ _state_ right now, you just worry about the job in front of you." Well, this was going just as well as he had expected. John decided not to make a jibe about Scott's language, that might be pushing him just a little too far.

Virgil pitched in: "Scott, not now. I can understand that you might want to have a... conversation later, but we are all a bit busy and I for one could do without this type of distraction." Virgil, the voice of reason as always. John was glad that it had been Virgil that had taken the call that day.

"Fine, not now, later."

* * *

And now that later had come. Alan, Virgil and Gordon had already arrived back and changed, so the they were all assembled when Thunderbird One landed.

"Here we go. Remember you said you'd take the blame, don't hang me out to dry." Gordon clearly wasn't sure about this, but John had every confidence in his plan to win Scott round. Almost every confidence.

"You sure you guys want to be here for this? " John asked.

It was Virgil who answered for the rest of them. "We're going to hear it wherever we are, so we might as well witness it. And maybe we can stop him putting you back in hospital."

"Gee, thanks Virgil" John muttered. _Almost every confidence._

Scott had barely stepped in the room before he had begun yelling.

"Now would you kindly tell me what the hell you think you are doing running dispatch on four missions not two weeks after you nearly died from internal bleeding. You're smart John, but even you can't think you are ready for that yet." Scott's temper was beyond volcanic, it was like a solar flare. . It had been a long time since Scott had been this angry, and then never at John. It was very unpleasant to be at the center of that tempest.

"Scott... " John started, his words carefully prepared, but he wasn't allowed to start, let alone finish.

"Do you not understand the risks you took on the missions? What if you couldn't cope? What would have happened then? What if we had lost people?"

Scott rounded on Gordon, still burning with fury and the younger man made an involuntary step back. "And Gordon! Of all the stupid things to do! I understand that there were people in trouble but you can't just leave your post like that, particularly with Kayo and Brains off island."

"Scott..."

"What if something happened to him and we weren't there for him again?"

 _Ah_ , thought John, _now we get to the heart of it._

"Scott! Stop yelling and let me speak!" John realised that he himself was yelling, but it happened so seldom it seemed to shock Scott into silence. Instead he crossed his arms and with a last frown at Gordon said, "OK, talk, but make this good."

John sighed "It is good, I mean I'm good. I'm sore yes, but no longer actually injured and I can do a hell lot more good sat at this desk then I can sat in my room in bed." He saw Scott make to say something but held up his hand.

"Wait, let me guess." He started counting off on his hands. "First, you say I can't possible be up to this, because of the surgery. Well, luckily sitting in one place is one of the few things I can do with ease right now. Then you mention the effects of the medication, and that it might be clouding my judgement. But I've been reducing that right down and only take it when I need to sleep. And the pain's not that bad any more unless I twist the wrong way - the wound is healing nicely. Next you'd probably mention that I can't possibly just jump into four missions at once. Well I can and I did. That's my job and I'm damn good at it thank you very much, and there's nothing like a week in bed to make the mind rot." John was close to yelling again so took a moment to pause and regather his thoughts, the fine speech he had rehearsed completely forgotten.

"It's hard enough normally when you guys are out risking your lives, and I am sitting so far out of reach of you. At least then I am helping, but sitting in bed doing nothing listening to you four in danger is more painful than anything. And I have something quite recent to compare it to." Scott's expression was still stone - John couldn't tell if he was getting through.

"And to stop you thinking I just jumped into this, I have been testing what I can deal with since I got back home." The others shifted slightly nervously, remembering all the help he had given them.

"Damn it, I should have known something was up, Virgil's not usually that quick at coding." Scott speared his brother with a look that Virgil's sudden faux innocence was useless against. The others were wisely neither saying anything or making eye contact.

John stepped closer to Scott, and was surprised to find that he was no longer angry. "And as for something happening to me - you do know that this was a freak accident right? It could have as easily happened falling down the stairs. And there is no long term detriment to having one kidney. People are born with only one, loose one to disease, donate one for transplant all with no long term effects. I'm going to get Brains to put a bit more padding on the right side of my suit just as a precaution, but in the long term nothing has changed."

"And in the short term? " Scott was clearly calming down now.

"Well I'm definitely not going to space anytime soon, not with these stitches anyway. But I've lost fifty percent of my kidneys, not my brain."

Scott uncrossed his hands from his chest and dropped to sit on the couch. "But why all this secrecy and plotting John? Why couldn't you just tell me that you were feeling better."

"Would you have listened? You respond much better to being shown something than being told it. Anyway, there wasn't time for a discussion today - Gordon was needed and he was needed straight away."

"I suppose I wouldn't have listened at that. I forget you could be such a a sneaky bastard." Scott now had a small smile on his face.

"Yep." John was quite proud of that. "Look, I'm quite aware how close this was, and have no desire to get that close again. We don't take unnecessary risks, but we do take necessary ones, and you need everyone on the team doing all they can to make each mission a success."

"You're right I suppose. Who am I kidding, you're always right." Scott stood suddenly and grabbed John into a bear hug "But I was so scared for you, don't make me go through that again, deal?"

"Deal." John returned the hug.

"Soooooo, does that mean I'm off the hook?" Gordon said nervously.

"Sure does, luckily for you"

"Well that's a relief for sure." Gordon broke into a big smile, and the others were suddenly smiling too, as the two oldest were no longer going toe - to - toe.

"Maybe next time there is less secrecy though, and we all listen and trust each other more." Suggested Scott.

"Would sure be good for my blood pressure" joked Alan.

"Maybe we don't have a next time." That was Virgil. John glanced over as he spoke - he hadn't had a chance to thank Virgil for talking him down from the station, and he promised himself he would make time for that conversation soon.

It was at that moment that there was a series of alerts from the desk. John moved over - carefully - as he was still aware of the scrutiny from his brothers. A scrutiny that wasn't going to go away - but that's just what life was like when your family was as close as the Tracy's were. And he wouldn't have it any other way.

"OK guys, we have a situation..."

* * *

 _And there we go, all done! I hope you enjoyed it! Feel free to leave a review - all constructive criticism welcome :)_


	8. Sorry!

welp, I just realised that I uploaded the wrong chapter here - that would have made no sense at all - sorry about that! Sooooo... lets pretend this never happened. I just have to find what I did with the actual chapter I meant to post.


	9. Actual Epilogue, honest!

_**I thought I was done with this story, but apparently I wasn't. It just needed a little something to finish this off as John needed a conversation with Virgil.**_

* * *

There was nothing Virgil liked more than tinkering under the hood of Thunderbird 2. There were somethings he liked as much, but nothing more. It was soothing to review all the systems and circuits, tweak some relays, brush up the emergency protocols. Brains could do this of course, but each pilot made it a matter of pride that they could do any maintenance or emergency repairs necessary. He had taken to doing a bit more work on his machine than usual, so if anyone was ever looking for him the hangers were a sure bet.

And so it was no surprise when he heard John call out "Virgil, are you about?"

"Up here." He yelled back, extracting himself from the panel he was buried head deep in. He had heard Thunderbird One arrive back just a few minutes – he looked at his watch. Shit, that was nearly two hours ago! He must have lost track of time again. Scott had taken John to the mainland for a final check up and he had wanted to find out how it had gone.

He reattached the panel cover just as John reached him.

"Hey" he said in greeting "How was your appointment? I got a bit side tracked." He gestured uselessly, sure John would understand.

With a grin that showed he did John leant causally against a control console. "It went great, clean bill of health, no complications present and none expected."

"Glad to hear it!" Virgil clapped his brother on the shoulder. "Does that mean you will be going upstairs again soon?"

"I'll need to have that discussion with Scott." John gave an eye roll - at the thought of another 'discussion' no doubt. "But I'll be up there in the next couple of days."

"Well as much as I'm gonna miss you having around it will be good to have you back as our eye in the sky. Not that you're not doing a great job down here of course..."

"But it's different to having the whole of Thunderbird Five at my fingertips." John finished for him in agreement.

Virgil knew that there was something else. As good as this news was it wasn't really unexpected, so not worthy of John seeking him out down here - it could have waited till dinner. People outside the family might think that John was a bit of a loner, someone who enjoyed their own company too much to mind the social isolation that came with manning a cutting edge communication satellite. Oh, he didn't mind his own company, that was true, but that wasn't the reason that John had been chosen for that particular position any more than it was his experience in space or his frankly amazing ability to multitask.

The reason that John was space monitor was because he was a master at communication. Not just the technical side: signals and soundwaves and frequencies and data. It was the human communication that John excelled at: he could give instruction to governments, liaise with aid agencies or comfort a child in distress all with equal ease.

So Virgil knew there was a reason that John had chosen to have this conversation in the middle of Thunderbird Two away from the bustle of the main house, and Virgil could wait patiently until John was ready to explain it. He started to put his tools neatly away but it didn't take long, voice now serious.

"Thank you. I haven't said that yet I don't think. And it was important to me to say it before I went back up."

Virgil gave him a questioning look, waiting for him to elaborate.

"It was you who got me down here. If you hadn't be there, guided me step by step, I don't think I would have made it into the space elevator. I don't think... I think that day might have ended differently." John was meeting Virgil's eyes with a piercing gaze, sincerity rolling off him.

"Ah, come on now John, don't you think you're being a bit dramatic?" Virgil gave a soft snort, breaking eye contact to secure the tool box in the cupboard where it belonged, so he knew where to find it in an emergency. An emergency like one of his brothers needing urgent medical treatment. It was more than the need to help strangers that caused him to keep his machine in more than top condition in the last few weeks. "Anyone of the others who picked up would have done the same."

"I'm not being dramatic. I don't know what would have happened if you had all been out on a rescue when I called." Virgil gave a shiver at that. Those few minutes had been some of Virgil's worst – hearing John in so much pain, being unable to do anything to fix it. He had trying to put out of his mind how close a call that had really been, and had been working on contingencies for similar scenarios in the future.

"I just wanted to say, I'm glad you picked up, and thank you for saving my life." Virgil couldn't take any more and with a swift turn grabbed John into a tight hug, feeling John return it.

"You daft bugger." He muttered into the astronaut's shoulder. Why was he not surprised that John felt the need for a heartfelt and private thankyou for that? For something that should be taken for granted. "You're welcome." Virgil drew back so he could go see John's face, and John could see the finger he was now wagging at him. "The first one is free, but then I start charging."

John gave a laugh at that and drew his brother out of the hanger and towards the house. "I got it, don't worry. Ready for dinner? We'll be just in time."

"Sure, what we having?" Virgil noticed his hunger for the first time in hours: hard work and a reminder of John's near death experience could do that.

"Pizza. It doesn't take long to cook a pizza remember." John grinned as he called the elevator to take them back in to the light and space of their home.

Virgil was aghast. "That's what you took from that conversation? And here I was thinking Alan was the one who was food obsessed.."

"He just hasn't learnt to hide it as well."

Virgil could see the truth in that. And as they joined the rest of the family he also knew another truth – it wasn't just Virgil who had saved John's life that day. His family had come together before and they would again.


End file.
